Alan Greenspan, as the head of the Federal Reserve, has been in an enviable position to witness the economic movements of the USA and the rest of the world.

The book is divided into two parts, the first one is a chronological biography, and the second one is his views on the challenges facing the USA and the rest of the world.

I was a bit disappointed with the publishing date of the book (it was published in 2007), as it was before the big global recession. I would have loved to read his views on the downturn, its causes, and his defence against the role he played in creating it, as a number of people have insinuated.

I have been reading John’s newsletter for over 5 years now, and have rarely been disappointed with it, or disagreed with his ideas about where the US and world economy are headed. So when I saw this book, I picked it up expecting the same in-depth analysis and succinct conclusions.

Let me start by saying that I am completely on board with their basic premise of the book – ‘It is the end of the line for debt fueled economic expansion. Western governments will run into the limits of their ability to borrow money at today’s low rates. This will result in the Endgame, where all the debt will finally unravel’. The endgame has come about due to the unchecked rise in private sector debt over the last 60+ years. After the crisis, governments have stepped in and have increased public debt at rates never seen before except during a war.

I fully agree with the conclusions reached by the authors and their analysis of the problems being faced by all the large and small, developed and developing economies of the world. Also, I like the fact that these is a small section where they present us with ideas of what to invest in, based on our views about which direction the world economy will take.